This week the Belle Plaine Board of Education tackled two weighty issues that will have a profound impact on our children’s future: creation of an alternative high school and a revision of the academic eligibility policy.
Normally, the review and passage of a tentative budget for the upcoming fiscal year would gain the major headline from the meeting, especially when it appears that even in the wake of state cutbacks, the Belle Plaine district appears to be in sound financial condition with no tax increases expected.
Even as many school districts across the nation are experiencing financial problems, with some metropolitan districts closing up to half of their school buildings, officials in the Belle Plaine district are projecting a budget surplus of almost $1.75 million at the end of the 2010-2011 fiscal year. Many of us remember not too many years ago when a former superintendent was rightfully congratulated for forming a budget which would give the district a one-payroll cushion, about a quarter of a million dollars.
Now, thanks to sound fiscal management, the district patrons will not face any school property tax increase.
What concerns members of the board is the apparent significant percentage of students in our district who for many reasons are not progressing in a satisfactory fashion toward a diploma. One board member estimated that 15-17 percent of the students enrolled at the high school are at-risk for a variety of reasons. Out of that concern came Wednesday’s discussion of the creation of an alternative high school.
The alternative high school concept has been under periodic consideration for several years by the board. Most recently, an attempt to establish such a school late last summer was defeated because of questions of how non-traditional students might interact with other students in the building, the availability of a qualified instructor for the alternative school, what might the program cost and what would be the curriculum.
Although the board voted 3-2 to proceed with the creation of the alternative high school at its last meeting, many of those questions still must be answered. One of those questions that might be closer to being answered is the site for the school. With students moving out of the Lincoln Junior High building after this school year, it would be available. But even that potential answer has some questions, such as how many students in the Belle Plaine district vs. how many in the HLV district might be served with this program? How much would it cost to maintain the junior high building and will residents see the benefit of keeping it?
There is little doubt that there is a need for a program that will serve a segment of our student population and the alternative school concept may be the answer. Students may not be succeeding in the traditional school atmosphere for a variety of reasons, including home problems, teen pregnancy, behavior issues, etc. One professor estimated that as many as 25 percent of the national student population is at risk.
The board members seemed to agree that something has to be done. Now it’s up to the administration and staff to seek the answers to the questions remaining out there in time for something to be implemented by the start of the next school year.
The board decided to revise the academic eligibility policy to make sure all students are passing all of their subjects before they can participate in sports, music, drama, etc. Board members had several ideas on how to clarify the revised policy and the language was still being finalized the day after the meeting. But students should know that when the fourth quarter begins on Monday, they’d better be passing all of their classes if they wish to participate in extracurricular activities.